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‘Renfield’ Review – Vampire Comedy Delivers Gory Fun and Anemic Storytelling

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Renfield

The original 1931 Universal Monsters movie Dracula opens with an introduction to Renfield (Dwight Frye) as he travels to Transylvania to solidify business plans with Count Dracula (Bela Lugosi), only to wind up his raving mad servant instead. Director Chris McKay (The Tomorrow War) and writer Ryan Ridley (“Rick and Morty”) seamlessly tie their modern reimagining of the characters to the original Universal classic before skipping ahead to the present day in horror-comedy Renfield. The leap simultaneously establishes the reverence for the horror classics as well as an anemic shorthand in the storytelling.

After the impressive introductory sequence that sees Nicholas Hoult and Nicolas Cage composited into the 1931 film to explain their history together, we meet Renfield (Hoult) in the present as a long-suffering henchman to his narcissistic boss, Dracula (Cage). Despite an early attempt by vampire hunters to free Renfield from Dracula’s grip, Renfield remains a miserable yet loyal servant in a constant struggle to source Dracula’s next meal. Renfield tries to absolve his guilt by using meetings at a support group to poach the toxic narcissists in fellow members’ lives to feed his boss while realizing something needs to change. Enter traffic cop Rebecca Quincy (Awkwafina), whose severe grudge against the Lobos, a New Orleans crime syndicate, puts everyone on a violent collision course. It might finally allow Renfield to sever his toxic relationship with Dracula, but he’ll have to survive it all first.

Nicolas Cage as Dracula in Renfield, directed by Chris McKay. Photo Credit: Universal Pictures

Nicholas Hoult effortlessly imbues Renfield with sympathetic guilt and warm humanity. Still, his beleaguered straight man struggles to hold the spotlight against Awkwafina’s firecracker wit or Nicolas Cage’s scene-chewing portrayal of Dracula. As charming as Hoult’s Renfield can be, and the actor can handle whatever physical horror or comedy gag gets tossed his way, the mild-mannered Renfield shrinks to the background when more assertive, bolder characters are on screen. Renfield often becomes overlooked in his own story against Rebecca’s volatile bid to avenge her father or Dracula’s narcissistic quest for domination.

Chris McKay’s reverence for horror, the classic Universal Monsters, and these characters extends well beyond the ingenious 1931 callbacks. It’s everywhere, right down to the Basil Gogos inspired color palette. Dracula fanatics will connect Rebecca’s father to another classic literary character or spot the nods to other Universal Monsters. Cage’s Dracula is an amalgam of various character iterations, right down to the London After Midnight-inspired sharp teeth. While a respectable choice, this quickly becomes distracting as Cage struggles to work around them.

Renfield Dracula

Photo Credit: Michele K. Short / Universal Pictures

The horror comedy, helmed by a clear horror fan, assumes the audience is just as savvy and operates on shorthand for its rules and world-building. A knowing quip about all the various vampire lore amassed over the decades, blurring fact from fiction, provides the excuse to toss any rules out the window. The joke lands, but it highlights the overall anemic storytelling at play here. Renfield zips along from set piece to set piece with breakneck speed while giving more precedence to Rebecca’s story over Renfield’s plight. Only when Hoult and Cage are together on screen does the central toxic relationship get explored at all; Renfield is more comfortable as an irreverent splatstick funhouse ride.

And that’s okay. The cast is having a ball, and it’s infectious. McKay’s tributes to horror charm, while his creative use of gore elicits the film’s biggest laughs. The commitment to doing as much practically as possible is also winsome. All around it’s a breezy, low-stakes, and effortless watch with inspired moments, even if it feels like McKay’s hampered by the script that’s mostly centered around vague yet wholesome messaging of reclaiming power from a toxic relationship.

It won’t reignite fervor for a new Universal Monsters resurgence, but Renfield makes for an entertaining enough time at the movies.

Renfield releases in theaters on April 14, 2023.

Horror journalist, RT Top Critic, and Critics Choice Association member. Co-Host of the Bloody Disgusting Podcast. Has appeared on PBS series' Monstrum, served on the SXSW Midnighter shorts jury, and moderated horror panels for WonderCon and SeriesFest.

Movies

‘Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey II’ Review – Sequel Defies Expectations and Surpasses the Original

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Winnie the Pooh Blood and Honey 2

Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey broke the internet when it was first announced back in 2022. Disney fans and everyone else were caught off guard by the concept of the iconic toy bear and his stuffed pals becoming feral, but enough time has passed to where this current genre practice — turning public-domain material into horror films — is less of a shock. However, that didn’t stop folks from reacting with surprise when a sequel was reported last year. And with all the financial success from last time, this continuation has more resources at its disposal. That increased budget is evident on screen and partly why Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey II surpasses the original.

Returning director Rhys Frake-Waterfield is joined by Summer of ‘84 writer Matt Leslie, and their collaboration is a quasi-reset of the first Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey. The prior film is now treated as an in-universe adaptation of Christopher Robin’s horrific ordeal. The meta touch gives the sequel room to acknowledge the original film’s deficiencies as well as a chance to expand on the lore. As the “real” Christopher Robin (Scott Chambers) tries to now move on with his life while also enduring accusations from all sides, Winnie-the-Pooh (a.k.a. The Yellow Bastard) and his wicked storybook pals brew up their next violent course of action.

Beyond its opening act, the previous Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey was much too plotless and straightforward. Its only ambition was reimagining Pooh and Piglet as merciless killers. Sure, audiences mainly tuned in to see these characters carry out a massacre, but there is no denying that the execution was monotonous. That same kind of narrative redundancy is, thankfully, not in the sequel. Leslie penned a more sinuous script that doesn’t ever switch on the “autopilot” button. From probing Christopher Robin’s extensive trauma to revealing the origin of the Hundred Acre Wood villains (which now include Owl and Tigger), the second film is more structured and engaging.

On top of a better story, Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey II benefits from higher production values. The detailed creature designs and suits are more convincing than before; they don’t just look like actors in masks anymore. Simple yet favorable upgrades, such as articulating mouths and thorough skin texture, make these monsters persuasive as they work toward the film’s ultimate body count. The extra funding also allows for elaborate set-pieces, including a rave-set mass murder and a brief but exciting chainsaw sequence. In addition, Andrew Scott Bell’s score work in these films continues to be a highlight.

Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey II is a significant step up in certain areas, although there is the issue of tone. The sequel resumes the grave atmosphere from earlier as well as injects random, not to mention welcome spurts of humor (the intentional sort). Nevertheless, this film is generally an improvement on the first, which read like a parody due to its uncompromisingly severe delivery. Here, there are glimpses of campiness that make for a more entertaining experience.

This flawed but enjoyable sequel defies expectations — albeit low ones — and outperforms its predecessor on most levels. There is more to appreciate this time around. And if plans for the “Poohniverse” go as planned, this won’t be the last appearance of the bloodthirsty Hundred Acre Wood gang.

From Fathom Events, Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey II will screen in theaters from March 26 to 28.

2.5 out of 5 skulls

Pictured: Poster for Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey II.

Pictured: Poster for Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey II.

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